Fake Date, Real Fate-Chapter 73: The Cold After

ADRIEN’S POV

I stood there for a while longer, soaked while staring down the street like the car might turn around.

It didn’t.

Eventually, I made my way back to my own car, every step heavier than the last. I got in, soaked with rainwater, dripping it onto the leather seats and I didn’t care. The umbrella is somewhere behind me back on the road, let the rain have it.

I gripped the wheel but didn’t start the car.

instead, I pulled out my phone and called.

It rang once. Twice.

Cameron picked up on the third.

"Yo, Adrien—"

"Meet me at Helix," I said. My voice was low. "I’m already on the way."

There was a pause. "Everything okay, bro?"

The silence on my end must’ve said enough. I hung up.

****

The lights of Helix Lounge bled through the windshield as I pulled up. Neon red and ice-blue. Fake warmth. The valet stepped up to my window.

I tossed the keys over without a word.

"Welcome, sir," the valet offered, but I barely heard him. My head was a hurricane. I just needed noise. A drink. A distraction. Or something strong enough to numb me.

I walked straight past the host, through the usual murmurs and whispers that followed wherever I went. Ignored them. Didn’t break stride.

The music pulsed from the inside, deeper and darker in the VIP section. I made my way up the back stairs, jaw clenched tight, vision still cloudy with rain and regret.

Cameron was already inside when I got there, lounging with a couple of girls in one of the VIP rooms, half a drink in hand, grinning at something one of them said.

"Get out," I snapped.

The smiles on their faces faltered, replaced with wide-eyed confusion. Cameron looked up, his brow furrowing.

"What’s wrong, dude?" he asked, starting to stand up..

"I said, get out," I repeated, my voice sharper this time.

The girls blinked. One of them tried to smile, brushing her hair behind her ear like maybe she could change my mind.

"Now," I growled.

The two girls exchanged nervous glances. The one who had tried to smile recoiled slightly but they got up. One of them glanced back at Cameron questioningly.

He shrugged and tilted his head like it wasn’t a total loss. "Another time, sweetheart."

Once they were gone, and I fell into the chair opposite him, grabbing the nearest bottle and pouring myself a glass, didn’t even ask what it was.

Cameron raised an eyebrow. "You good?"

I ignored him and drank it.

Cameron frowned. "Bro..." He eyed me from head to toe. "What the hell happened? Why are you wet?"

I didn’t answer.

He sat up, like he finally realized I wasn’t just in a bad mood; I looked like I just walked through a warzone.

"Seriously, man. You’re soaked. You look like you got dragged out of a lake. What happened?"

I downed the second glass.

Cameron narrowed his eyes. "Adrien..."

I gripped the glass so hard I was afraid it might break. The liquid burned going down, rough and unforgiving. Good. I needed that. I needed the pain to distract from the pain in my chest.

Cameron leaned in, elbows on his knees. "You gonna tell me what the hell is going on or do I need to start guessing?"

Another swallow.

"Alright," he sighed, like he was settling in. "Let’s see... how’d lunch with your mum go? Did she like Isabella?"

Glass after glass slid in front of me, and I downed them all like I was trying to drown the memory.

I ignored him, swallowing the burn. The alcohol settled heavy in my chest, but the ache inside was worse. Why did I freeze? Why did I let her slip away?

The alcohol wasn’t working fast enough. Nothing could drown out the image of her taking his hand. Leaning into him.

"I fucked up," I muttered, finally. Voice hoarse.

Cameron stopped talking. His expression shifted from probing annoyance to genuine concern. He leaned back slightly, studying me.

"Okay," he said, his voice softening a fraction. "About what? The lunch? Your mum?"

I stared into the depths of my now empty glass the swirling remnants a grim reminder of the chaos I felt in my brain. "With Isabella," I managed, the words tasted like ash on my lips.

Cameron’s expression shifted, a slight frown creasing his forehead. "okay? How bad are we talking?"

I looked at him.

"Bad enough I might not get another chance."

I closed my eyes and tried to steady myself. What am I feeling? Anger? Regret? Pain? It was all mixed together, twisting tight in my gut.

"We... fought. She left the car. Just... stormed off so I left her and drove off" I continued.

He blinked. "Wait. You mean Isabella?"

I nodded once, fingers tight around the glass.

Cameron’s eyes narrowed, waiting for me to explain. Explain what? That I’m an idiot for letting her go? I didn’t answer.

Cameron looked at me like I’d grown a second head. "You left her on the road?"

"After accusing her of being a gold digger," I added.

He closed his eyes and leaned back. "Again? Bro, I told you—"

"I know what you told me."

"So why the hell did you say it again?"

"I don’t know," I said quietly. "Because I was angry."

Cameron was silent for a beat.

"And so... you went full nuclear?"

"I didn’t plan to," I snapped. "We argued. Then I─."

I let the silence stretch.

"I left her. Then it started to rain"

I laughed. Bitter and sharp. "It rained because I’m a fucking idiot."

"You really gonna let this eat you up? I mean... you called her a gold digger, but now you’re acting like you care."

I slammed my glass down. "I don’t know what I’m feeling. I don’t know what the hell I am doing."

He raised his brows high in surprise. "You came back for her, right? You didn’t just leave her there to let the rain beat the crap out of her."

I looked away. How could I explain this mess inside? The anger, the guilt, the confusion?

"Yeah, I went back," I said quietly. "But it was too late. Some other guy was already there. Holding her. Talking to her like he owned the place. The one she had lunch with yesterday."

Cameron’s eyes widened. "That guy?"

"Yeah."

I laughed again—tighter and hollow this time.

"He got to her first. Sat there with her. Gave her a fucking handkerchief. That guy said something that made her lean into him like she fucking belonged there."

"Shit..."

"She looked at him like he was her whole world, Cam. She leaned into him. Took his hand. Let him walk her to his car."

I downed another drink.

"I didn’t even get the chance to say anything. Just stood there. Watching. Like a fucking idiot."

Cameron studied me for a long moment, then said, "You do realize you’re acting like a jealous boyfriend over a woman you keep calling a gold digger, right?"

I didn’t answer.

"Adrien."

I poured myself a glass.

"Look," Cameron said more gently, "I warned you. You keep calling her that, but it’s not about her. It’s about you. You’re scared. So you lash out. But you crossed a line, man. And now you’re the one left out in the rain."

"I thought if I pushed hard enough," I muttered, "she’d break. That she’d admit it. That I’d finally know for sure."

"And what if there’s nothing to admit?" Cameron leaned in. " I mean you wanted to catch her slipping, but the only one who slipped was you."

I leaned back, jaw tight.

"She’s probably done, Cam."

"Maybe," he said honestly. "Man, you better hope she doesn’t quit on you. She’s your personal assistant — if she walks, you’re screwed."

I laughed bitterly. "Maybe she should."

"Don’t say that." His voice was sharp now. "You don’t want to lose her. You just don’t know how to say it."

I finished the glass of whatever I am drinking and stared at the empty bottle. "I don’t know anything right now."

Finally, Cameron’s voice lowered like he was about to tease me. "You like her."

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